Arsenal are set to move for a central midfielder this summer as Unai Emery gets down to work at the Emirates.

A host of names have been linked with Arsenal since Emery's arrival - including those who have played under him in recent years.

Among those linked are former Blackburn midfielder Steven N'Zonzi and Adrien Rabiot, an arguably more exciting option.

The 21-year-old has just one year left on his deal with the Ligue 1 champions are there have been suggestions he could be on the move this summer, with Arsenal one of the clubs mentioned as a possible destination, reports Football.London.

And given the club are on the look out for a defensive midfielder to come in and slot into Emery’s preferred 4-2-3-1 formation, recent comments from Arsenal’s head coach about Rabiot will be interesting for fans hoping to see the France international arrive this summer.

Rabiot on France duty (Image: AFP)

Head Coach Unai Emery at the Arsenal training ground at London Colney (Image: Arsenal FC/Getty)

Emery said: “Let’s talk about Rabiot. He’s a central midfielder, who is more comfortable playing as a defensive midfielder rather than a creative one. Even if he remains more of box-to-box, rather than a defensive midfielder.

“When you want to play with a defensive, creative and box-to-box-midfielders in fixed positions, Rabiot finds himself confronted to a problem. He has to run, run, run and not play in a fixed position statically. And even less so with his back turned on the action.

Paris Saint-Germain's Adrien Rabiot (Image: REX/Shutterstock)

“Rabiot doesn’t really like playing as a defensive midfielder, he likes playing as a box-to-box, but I prefer him as a defensive midfielder. That’s why after the elimination against Real Madrid [in the 2017/18 Champions League], I told him he would play as a defensive midfielder.

“In that position, he can be faced with play and switch around with [Marco] Verratti. He is more competitive in these conditions. With certain players, you can’t impose a strict idea. You have to adapt yourself to their characteristics in order to win in individual and collective competitiveness.”